NBA to expand technical foul rulings

[Dan's Brain]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=5609817

NBA referees will have more reasons to issue technical fouls next season.

At the referees' annual meeting in Jersey City, N.J., on Thursday, the league announced the guidelines for technical fouls will expand to include "overt" player reactions to referee calls.

Referees have been instructed to call a technical for:

• Players making aggressive gestures, such as air punches, anywhere on the court.

• Demonstrative disagreement, such as when a player incredulously raises his hands, or smacks his own arm to demonstrate how he was fouled.

• Running directly at an official to complain about a call.

• Excessive inquiries about a call, even in a civilized tone.

Article highlights include this gem by Ron Johnson, the NBA's Senior VP of Referee Operations:

Our players are more personally connected to fans than any other sports," Johnson said. "We don't have masks. ... There's nothing you can hide on the expression of an NBA players. ... People expect hockey players to be fighting. They expect baseball managers to be kicking dirt on umpires. But that's not our game. That's not what our fans want. They tell us in many many ways...

Players are now banned from looking unhappy.... Excellent. Just what the fans wanted.

The timing of this is kind of weird. Rasheed Wallace DID retire.

[The X]

I like it. I'm sick of Lebron glaring at ref. T him up

Seriously though, they'll call this for first two weeks of season then we won't see it again unless it's Ron Artest.

[George7]

I don't like it that much.

Basketball,as other sports,is an emotional sport.Expressions like that and disagreements with the refs are part of this game.It just won't stop players from doing it though,and will result in many technicals given,if the rulings are followed all the way

[shadowgrin]

The refs won't enforce this when LeBron complains to the league about this.

[dare]

A lot of technical fouls are coming this season.

[benji]

So stupid, not a single one of these deserves a technical, nor does half the shit they currently issue them for.

After Kobe gets ejected from the first 5 games they'll stop enforcing it. lol like they'll ever enforce anything on the stars

[buzzy]

Sounds incredibly stupid. Most of those are spontaneous reactions you might not even have control of.

[Martti.]

Good for Sheed he retired, he'd be out of every game in like 2 minutes now..

[hova-]

I hate it. Ridiculous. Let them play like men with some toughness and emotion ...

[Patr1ck]

Wow, I took a survey at nbafanforum on that exact subject and was asked about all those issues with video examples. I said no to just about every example, seems like a lot of people said yes or they were ignored.

My suggestion was that players should be more properly educated to why infractions are called, especially if they don't understand the call.

One thing they want to do is speed up the game trying to keep complaining to a minimum, and if course, lower scrutinization of officials.

There was one play where Mike Bibby was beat baseline but he stayed on the side of the defender all the way to the rim, and the defender leaned into him and got the foul on Bibby, and Bibby complained with his hands in the air wondering why it was called. It was a borderline call because Bibby never blocked the players path nor did he make sufficient contact in the air other than having the player jump into him. On the other hand, Bibby never established defensive position because he was beat initially.

[koberulz]

'Defensive position' isn't necessarily in front of the guy. You're entitled to the space you're in and any space you will inevitably occupy (a step or so ahead if you're running, anywhere you go in midair once you've committed to leaving the floor). If he was leaned into, then that's either an offensive foul or a no-call, because he's entitled to the space he's occupying.

According to common sense, of course. I believe the NBA rule is different, at least with regard to an offensive player's entitlement to land.

[Lamrock]

Hooray. Now the NBA will be even more rigged! God forbid another team like the 2004 Pistons should ever have even have the remotest chance of winning a title.

[JaoSming]

terrible, just terrible. thank god 'sheed isn't around anymore

[NovU]

So the NBA grants more powers to the referees, after years and years of controversial officiating and scandals.

It seems like the NBA is becoming referee's league. Might as well create a team with only referees and let them cruise to the title each and every year without playing at all.

[shadowgrin]

Stop hating on the refs. If it wasn't for their help Wade would still be ring-less.

[NovU]

If we were to implement NBA types of referee system here at NLSC, you'd be getting 10 posts suspension and $5 fine for such blasphemy.

[Patr1ck]

If he was leaned into, then that's either an offensive foul or a no-call, because he's entitled to the space he's occupying.

Only if he gets it first. Just because a defender jumps doesn't mean it won't be a foul.

anywhere you go in midair once you've committed to leaving the floor)

Completely wrong. Only allowed to jump straight up.

Player A1 fakes a field goal attempt causing Player B1 to leave his feet in an
attempt to block his shot. While Player B1 is still in the air and in a vertical position
above his original spot on the court, Player A1 moves into Player B1’s vertical
plane. When Player B1 returns to the court, contact is made with Player A1. Is
this a personal foul against Player B1?
No. This is a personal foul against Player A1 and he is charged with an
offensive foul. Player B1 is allowed his “air rights” so long as it is vertical
to his original position and Player A1 is not allowed to move into
that particular area without being guilty of causing illegal contact.

[Rip32]

I think this hurts middle-level players way more than it hurts super-stars. A guy like Kobe is still going to mouth off to the refs when he disagrees with a call and he may get a few more T's, but the players who usually get a decent amount of T's are going to go up.

Rip Hamilton has one of the biggest mouths in the NBA and I wouldn't be surprised to see him lead the league. He doesn't have the superstar resume that Kobe or Wade has and he already gets T'd alll the time. There's a lot of guys out there like that, so maybe it will shut everyone up... or maybe it won't do anything.

[koberulz]

If he was leaned into, then that's either an offensive foul or a no-call, because he's entitled to the space he's occupying.

Only if he gets it first. Just because a defender jumps doesn't mean it won't be a foul.

Unless I have something to learn about the laws of physics, the guy currently occupying the space has to have gotten there first.

anywhere you go in midair once you've committed to leaving the floor)

Completely wrong. Only allowed to jump straight up.

According to common sense, of course. I believe the NBA rule is different, at least with regard to an offensive player's entitlement to land.

And it should be changed.

[Oznogrd]

If we were to implement NBA types of referee system here at NLSC, you'd be getting 10 posts suspension and $5 fine for such blasphemy.

And we'd fine you under the personal conduct policy for soliciting and performing sexual acts from no less than 12 members of the Miami Heat.

Anyways on topic:

Theres are the stupidest guidelines for a tech i've ever seen. I'm a relatively laid back guy and have done all of these on blown calls or in the heat of a game. And thats without millions of dollars in incentives on the line with my performances. Emotions run high in competition and asking them to not even put their hands in the air? Hm. This is going to slow down games and we're going to get to see AMMO vs Scalabrine type matchups. Wait forget i said that lest we all love these rules. I get the running towards them to get in their face..but the rest are just silly. Most refs I've had would T you already for "excessive inquiry"

[Jeffx]

Let's give these sorry-ass refs more power - great.

The NBA - Where Stupid Happens.

[Axel The Great]

Just give players a technical for playing basketball why don't you?

[Houndy]

Watch them give a T for saying , "Hell Yeah"

[Lamrock]

Yeah, this could very well end up being the last NBA season. Stern did a great job the first few years as commissioner, but now he's just a greedy cunt who is destroying the league.

[Modifly]

This is ridiculous. So players can't express their emotions and heat of the moment on the court? Expanding the technical foul rulings is unnecessary, what they currently have in place are stupid already. I hope this goes as what some people before me have already said. They become strict on this for the first two weeks of the season then it slowly dissolve away.

Thank god Donaghy isn't around anymore. Wait, there's Joe Crawford.